Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Playa del Carmen and Novoshakhtinsk

For one person, living is cheaper in Novoshakhtinsk: $1,045 a month against $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Playa del Carmen
🇲🇽 Mexico
$1,204
/mo nomad
Novoshakhtinsk
🇷🇺 Russia
$1,045
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Playa del Carmen and in Novoshakhtinsk

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Playa del Carmen and in Novoshakhtinsk actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,045 in Novoshakhtinsk, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $1,204
  • Novoshakhtinsk $1,045

A couple spends around $2,102 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $1,632 in Novoshakhtinsk, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $2,102
  • Novoshakhtinsk $1,632

A family of three spends $3,000 per month in Playa del Carmen vs $2,218 in Novoshakhtinsk, rent included.

  • Playa del Carmen $3,000
  • Novoshakhtinsk $2,218

Playa del Carmen costs about 15% more than Novoshakhtinsk, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Playa del Carmen and Novoshakhtinsk are more affordable than the global median – Playa del Carmen 11% lower, Novoshakhtinsk 23% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$10.86 MX$201
$10.03 ₽837
8.28%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$44.21 MX$817
$41.21 ₽3,440
7.28%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.76 MX$217
$6.75 ₽564
74.22%
Cappuccino
$3.68 MX$68.0
$2.62 ₽218
40.46%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.34 MX$24.79
$1.07 ₽89.6
25.23%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.82 MX$15.24
$0.56 ₽46.97
46.43%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.06 MX$56.6
$1.88 ₽157
62.77%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.94 MX$91.2
$3.41 ₽285
44.87%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.47 MX$27.17
$1.29 ₽107
13.95%
White Bread (500g)
$2.22 MX$40.95
$0.71 ₽59.1
212.68%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.48 MX$27.32
$1.47 ₽122
0.68%
Eggs
$2.49 MX$45.99
$1.52 ₽127
63.82%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.52 MX$139
$9.87 ₽823
-23.81%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.96 MX$147
$5.34 ₽446
49.06%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.57 MX$232
$11.60 ₽968
8.36%
Apples (1kg)
$2.78 MX$51.3
$1.98 ₽165
40.40%
Banana (1kg)
$1.43 MX$26.37
$1.55 ₽129
-7.74%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.62 MX$48.37
$1.66 ₽139
57.83%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.14 MX$39.49
$3.03 ₽253
-29.37%
Potato (1kg)
$2.02 MX$37.38
$0.76 ₽63.2
165.79%
Onion (1kg)
$1.99 MX$36.74
$0.57 ₽47.55
249.12%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.14 MX$21.01
$1.20 ₽100
-5.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.20 MX$22.18
$0.63 ₽52.7
90.48%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.26 MX$78.7
$2.92 ₽244
45.89%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.02 MX$185
$8.01 ₽669
25.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.54 MX$28.41
$1.01 ₽84.3
52.48%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.66 MX$49.17
$2.30 ₽192
15.65%
🚌 Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.53 MX$9.73
$0.53 ₽44.26
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$27.51 MX$508
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.90 MX$90.6
$2.33 ₽195
110.30%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.43 MX$63.5
$0.35 ₽29.32
880.00%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$5.38 MX$99.4
$6.01 ₽502
-10.48%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.45 MX$26.76
$0.82 ₽68.1
76.83%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K MX$391.0K
$56.1K ₽4.7M
-62.30%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.0K MX$425.3K
$39.9K ₽3.3M
-42.33%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$85.4 MX$1,577
$114 ₽9,505
-25.05%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.46 MX$434
$5.69 ₽475
312.30%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.43 MX$525
$7.97 ₽665
256.71%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$62.2 MX$1,149
$38.65 ₽3,225
60.91%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$28.68 MX$530
$23.15 ₽1,932
23.89%
Cinema Ticket
$5.10 MX$94.3
$5.64 ₽471
-9.57%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$201 MX$3,715
$351 ₽29.3K
-42.70%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,947 MX$72.9K
$6,597 ₽550.6K
-40.17%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$44.39 MX$820
$86.1 ₽7,187
-48.45%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$41.35 MX$764
$49.54 ₽4,135
-16.53%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$72.7 MX$1,344
$134 ₽11.2K
-45.86%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$89.6 MX$1,656
$114 ₽9,475
-21.07%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$979 MX$18.1K
$420 ₽35.1K
132.99%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$373 MX$6,887
$329 ₽27.4K
13.41%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,681 MX$31.1K
$982 ₽82.0K
71.17%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,095 MX$20.2K
$567 ₽47.3K
93.22%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,949 MX$73.0K
$2,020 ₽168.6K
95.51%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$6,137 MX$113.4K
$1,333 ₽111.3K
360.35%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Playa del Carmen
Novoshakhtinsk
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$738 MX$13.6K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.45
21.45
-46.62%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Novoshakhtinsk: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Playa del Carmen
$373
Novoshakhtinsk
$329 11.8% $44
Groceries & Markets
Playa del Carmen
$258
Novoshakhtinsk
$205 20.5% $53
Eating Out
Playa del Carmen
$200
Novoshakhtinsk
$155 22.7% $46
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Playa del Carmen
$137
Novoshakhtinsk
$128 7.1% $9.7
Clothing & Footwear
Playa del Carmen
$112
Novoshakhtinsk
$173 54.6% $61
Sport & Entertainment
Playa del Carmen
$72
Novoshakhtinsk
$50 31% $22
Getting Around
Playa del Carmen
$52
Novoshakhtinsk
$6.2 * 88% $45

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $979 in Playa del Carmen versus $420 in Novoshakhtinsk. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen versus $41.00 in Novoshakhtinsk. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $258 vs $205 – making Novoshakhtinsk the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen
🇷🇺 Novoshakhtinsk
🕒 Local time
10:02 10:02 AM
18:02 6:02 PM
8 h ahead of Playa del Carmen
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
149,923
105,038
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 83.46 RUB (100 RUB = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 93.83 RUB (100 RUB = 1.07 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Playa del Carmen Novoshakhtinsk 10,760 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Playa del Carmen
  • Novoshakhtinsk

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.
Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index
Playa del Carmen vs Novoshakhtinsk: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Novoshakhtinsk cheaper than Playa del Carmen?
Yes – Playa del Carmen is pricier by about 15%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.
What income do you need for each city?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Playa del Carmen and $1,568 in Novoshakhtinsk. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Which city has lower housing costs?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Novoshakhtinsk, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Is eating out cheaper in Playa del Carmen or in Novoshakhtinsk?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $44.00 in Playa del Carmen and $41.00 in Novoshakhtinsk. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
How do food prices compare in Playa del Carmen and in Novoshakhtinsk?
Groceries cost about 26% more in Playa del Carmen, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Playa del Carmen or in Novoshakhtinsk?
A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Novoshakhtinsk, where all-in costs run around $1,045, than in Playa del Carmen at $1,204. In Novoshakhtinsk it covers expenses comfortably, while in Playa del Carmen it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
Is Playa del Carmen or Novoshakhtinsk more family-friendly?
Families tend to lean toward Novoshakhtinsk – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.
Which city is the better choice to relocate to?
If budget matters most, go with Novoshakhtinsk. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Playa del Carmen makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

Playa del Carmen vs other spots: cost of living compared

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